Muhammad
Muhsin Ibrahim
@muhsin234
Stories of Africa being taken for a
country or Nigeria for a
city in an unknown country, perhaps ‘Africa ’ do
not have anymore newsworthiness. More than many ‘intellectuals’, politicians,
organizations, individuals, etc from around the world have had, on several
instances, such faux pas or some similar talk that points towards that. Notables
and well-known, at least within the circle of my readers, of such include Sarah
Palin’s interview, Chimamanda’s chilling speech, The Danger of a Single Story and Farooq Kperogi’s piece, ‘Is Nigeria the name of a City?’, among others. It has, nonetheless, gone far
beyond that as I have recently discovered.
I attended the 17th International
Theatre Festival of India, called Bharat
Rang Mahotsav for a few days. The festival is still ongoing at the renowned
[Indian] National School of Drama, Delhi .
The school is disputably the best in the whole of Asia .
The festival will be rounded off on the 18th of this month. There
are theatre repertory groups from the U.S, Europe, Middle East and other Asian
countries, but there was/is nobody from Africa, though Africa
is the second largest continent on earth with over 50 sovereign nations.
Absence of a single participant from Africa has
more or less weakened the usage of the word: international.
For a long time prior to this
festival, as a student of theatre and film studies, I have since noticed the
‘non-existence’ of Africa in the theatre and the cinema realms and discourses
in India .
Quote me anywhere, less than a few people know that Africans produce any films
and stage any dramas of their own here. Notwithstanding that the university I
study boasts calling itself international,
there’s absolutely nothing African in their syllabi, nor reference thereof
except, probably, in Geography department’s. This is incredible!
Today, the Nigerian film industry
called Nollywood surpasses the Hollywood
in terms of production and is now the second largest in the world after Bollywood,
the Indian glamorous film industry. YET, it is largely in oblivion among the
billion plus populace of India .
Ditto the theatre of Africa, not only Nigeria ’s,
with all its richness, epoch and popularity in the UK , US and elsewhere. Professor Wole
Soyinka is the first African to be awarded the Nobel Prize in 1986 and he got
it in Literature (Drama!).
Recently, prominent Kannywood (i.e.
Kano-based film industry) personnel, including the ace actor, Ali Nuhu came to India
for a short course, sponsored by Nigerian government, on film. First, their
Industry was/is facing a dire challenge due to the so-called “Hausa-India films”
(i.e. Hausa-dubbed and lips-synched Hindi films). Being they were not taken
that serious here, they couldn’t do anything about that. Secondly, and on a
lighter tone, they obviously couldn’t get any chance to meet with any Bollywood
high-flying actor, director or producer, for we might have seen pictures of
them together.
Enough of this whining, some might
say. Yes, I can’t change the status quo. Africa
is largely, erroneously and ridiculously though, known as no more than a forest
that houses monkeys, or humans that resemble them. The North Korean government
has lately described President Obama as such. Or, for Ebola. Or, in other
instances, Indians know South Africa
and Kenya
as the two countries play cricket, their favourite game. And more, India ’s number
one statesman, Mahatma Ghandi ji once lived in the former.
But for Nigeria ,
Africa ’s most populous country and arguably
the richest, is often remembered when any Black man committed, or is accused
for committing, a crime. The dreaded insurgent group, Boko Haram has also
popularized the name of the country. I discussed this ugly truth in one of my articles.
It is high time Africans started
what I may call searching for ‘self-worth’. I am not advocating for egotism,
high-handedness or anything of the sort. But knowing yourself, your merit and
respect is needed now and always. Millions of Africans, particularly Nigerians,
take Indians to the highest esteem. We think of our Bollywood fave actors as paragons
of beauty, valour and value. Down here, you are not known, and in a few places
you are known, you mean little or nothing. However, not all are like that. As I
often say, we are individuals, so also they (Indians) are. But let’s know them
for what they are, and know yourself for what you are.
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